The Starving Clan
by Amberleaf le Haunt
Summary: ThunderClan is starving in their own territory, and Yellowstar pleads with the other Clans for help. However, they instead take advantage of the weakened state of their neighbours, and ThunderClan is left wondering if survival is too much to ask for...


**Yes, I know! Bad, bad Amber! Why am I working on another story instead of finishing the ones I already have?**

**Weeeeell... I was just reading Battles of the Clans last night (or did I have the idea before that? Lol, I don't know, but, ANYWAYS), and I read the story with Morningstar and ThunderClan, and how they were starving in their own territory. And, I decided, well, _I_ just _had_ to do that! :3 **

**So, anyways, here we are. ^.^; Just a warning, this story will be a _lot_ more angsty and sad than the actual story! There will be a lot more sadness, and, well... yeah; it just won't really be a pleasant or happy read. ^.^; It'll still be good, just kinda sad, that's all! :( Hopefully it will invoke strong emotions in the hearts of my readers. ^.^; **

**What the hell am I even talking about? XD **

**Well, anyways, enjoy! :3 **

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><p><span>The Starving Clan: Prologue<span>

A particularly bedraggled group of ThunderClan cats came to the Gathering that evening. Eyes roved curiously over their skinny bodies, bedraggled pelts, and sunken eyes, regarding with some surprise the way the ribs showed on the cats, the lost clumps of fur in some places, and the defeated way in which they all carried themselves.

The murmuring started as soon as their leader, Yellowstar, started struggling up onto the tree. The first time he tried, he failed; he slithered back down into a pathetic heap on the ground. He made it the second time, but he swayed on the branch where he stood. Sitting made his situation no better; it merely changed his balance, and he almost toppled off. The other three leaders watched, bemused and unsure of what this meant.

"The Gathering will now begin!" yowled Stonestar, the RiverClan leader. Snowstar, the ShadowClan leader, and Galestar, the WindClan leader, both nodded in agreement.

Yellowstar stepped forward. "I have a proposition to make," he rasped. With every word, his flanks fluttered, as if he was taking deep breaths, but they weren't very useful to him. "The Clans need to share their hunting grounds and the prey in each Clan's territory."

The Gathering cats went quiet with shock, some murmuring to each other as if they thought they knew what was going on. ThunderClan was stone silent, just staring up at their leader with eyes full of confusion and concern.

"What?" Snowstar snarled, his lip curling back. "You're an idiot! Why would we do that?"

"Well, you obviously think you can," Yellowstar snapped, "because, for the last few quarter moons, you've been stealing our prey!"

"What?" Snowstar looked shocked, and his cats started yowling in protest. "We are doing no such thing! Are you suggesting we can't feed ourselves with what we have?"

"My Clan is starving," Yellowstar admitted. "We haven't been able to find much fresh-kill for days now. We've been forced to watch our kits and elders starve slowly away, and some cats haven't eaten for days now so that the old and the young will get food. We need your help." The Gathering had fallen into shocked silence once again. And then it was as if the ThunderClan cats had finally realized what their leader had said, because they started yowling.

"You can't tell everyone that!" "We'll look weak!" "You're going insane, you old crow!"

This last yowl was from one of the apprentices, who was quickly shushed by his mentor.

Stonestar was shaking his head in a manner that suggested that he was going to say no right off the bat, although he _had_ thought about it for a short time. "Sorry, Yellowstar," he meowed, "but _we've_ barely got enough prey to feed ourselves as it is. I mean, we're getting through all right—" it was quite obvious, by the cats' sleek coats and their lush, thick tails "—but it's been a cold leaf-bare, and the river has frozen over in many places. We can feed ourselves just fine, but we never have any left over at the end of the day. So, I'm sorry, but I will have to admit that we have none to spare. RiverClan cannot help you."

Galestar went next. Her tail switched from side to side as if she felt kind of guilty about her decision, but she knew there was no other choice. "I'm sorry, Yellowstar, but the rabbits are hiding and we have not enough prey to spare for another Clan. We're doing okay, but I have to think of my own Clan."

Yellowstar's tail drooped, but he turned to the ShadowClan leader. "Snowstar?"

Snowstar spat, "No, of _course_ not! We're not going to share prey with _you_! Our Clan is bigger than any other, so we really don't have any to spare!" He nodded towards Stonestar. "He was right about it being a cold leaf-bare. That being said, if you can't find food in your own territory, perhaps that means that there are only meant to be three Clans now?" He looked around slyly, and the other two leaders were nodding. "Perhaps it's a test from StarClan. Only the three strongest Clans are meant to survive."

Yellowstar nodded sadly, and meowed, "Well, I asked for help, and you so far have given none. The fate of ThunderClan is in your paws; please, do the right thing." With that, he leaped off the Great Oak, almost collapsing onto the ground, and led his angry and muttering Clan off the Gathering Island on shaky legs, leaving the other cats in the clearing to stare at each other uncertainly in the sudden silence that prevailed.


End file.
